Festus Keyamo, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), has explained his absence from the legal team defending Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, the president-elect, in court.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had declared Tinubu winner of the February 25 presidential election, but his major rivals in the exercise, headed for the court to challenge his victory.
Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Peter Obi of Labour Party are both claiming to have won the election and they have hired lawyers to prove their case in court.
On Tuesday morning, the list of Tinubu’s 48-man legal counsel went viral on social media.
Litigation: APC boosts Tinubu’s legal team with 12 senior lawyers
Presidential election: Tinubu’s victory and rigging claims of Obi, Atiku
The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) also released a 12-man list of senior lawyers to defend Tinubu.
However, the name of Keyamo is not on any of the lists.
In an apparent response to inquiries on the absence of Keyamo in the legal team, the senior lawyer wrote, “For those who made inquiries, a serving Minister (by our Constitution) cannot be listed in any private legal team, though he/she can support the team in preparation. Hence, the present cabinet Ministers who are SANs can only formally join the Election Petition team after May 29th.”
For those who made inquiries, a serving Minister (by our Constitution) cannot be listed in any private legal team, though he/she can support the team in preparation. Hence, the present cabinet Ministers who are SANs can only formally join the Election Petition team after May 29th
— Festus Keyamo, SAN (@fkeyamo) March 7, 2023
Keyamo was actively involved in the campaign of Tinubu, serving as a spokesperson for the APC Presidential Campaign Council.
He is currently the minister of state for Labour and productivity.
